This invention pertains to apparatus having a pair of gripping pieces that cooperate to aid a user to grab objects out of the user""s normal reach.
People sometimes lose mobility when they age or if they become disabled. Often the elderly and disabled cannot bend over to pick up objects off the ground. A conventional cane can be an effective aid for enabling elderly and disabled persons to move about without the assistance of others. However, conventional canes offer little assistance to the person attempting to pick up objects out of the user""s reach, such as off the ground.
An elongated clip, such as the one shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,104 to Lin, can be used to grasp objects and pick them up off the ground. Such a device, however, provides little assistance in helping the person move about without the aid of others or other devices. The person in need of assistance still needs to use a device such as a cane to move about. It is undesirable to carry two devices, one for assisting the user move about and a second for grasping objects.
Some canes, such as the ones described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,800 to Sergi and U.S. Pat. No. 5,640,985 to Snyder, have a trigger attached to a gripping claw or finger with a cable or cord. One problem with these and similar designs is that the cable or cord can break, or otherwise become damaged or twisted, which would hinder the operation of the device.
Other devices have pieces that can be easily hit and knocked off or broken. Examples of such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,160 to Osborn and U.S. Pat. No. 6,058,953 to Stefanelli. The durability of these devices is therefore limited.
Other designs suffer from the problem of applying an inappropriate amount of force to an object. Such a problem is apparent with motorized devices, such as the one shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,956 to Toot. The Toot patent shows a motor that urges gripping members together. A problem with this design is that the amount of force developed by the motor can crush or otherwise damage the object being grasped. Alternatively, the motor may not provide enough force to adequately grab the object as it is being lifted off the ground.
Thus, a need exists for an improved cane and grabber.
In accordance with the present invention, a grabber is provided that is free of easily breakable component parts and that allows a user to accurately and easily control the amount of force applied to objects that are grabbed.
The grabber is made of a strong and durable material, such as wood or plastic. In one embodiment, the grabber can be used to perform two functions: it can be used to aid in walking and also to grab objects off the ground without requiring the user to bend over. The invention has two arms. Each arm has a first end and a second end, which define the arm""s length in the longitudinal direction. The longitudinal length is approximately equal to the distance from the ground to the hip of a person. Each arm has an inner surface, an outer surface, and two side surfaces. A pivot hole is formed through each arm between the first and second ends. The arms are pivotally attached to one another and can pivot relative to each other around their respective pivot holes. The inner surface of each arm is in facing contact with the other. A slot is formed through each arm from the inner surface to the outer surface proximal the second end, between the pivot hole and the second end.
A gripping piece is on the first end of each arm. According to one aspect of the invention, the gripping piece is comprised of an ear, a lug, and a pad. One ear is on the first end of each arm. Each ear has a joint end and a free end. Each free end is laterally displaced from the joint end. There is a lug on each ear. Each ear and respective lug are like-shaped. Each lug has a free end and an opposed abutting end. The free ends of each ear and respective lug are coplanar, and a pad is connected to the free ends. A centering hole is formed in the second side surface of the first arm, and a centering pin extends from the abutting end of the lug on the second arm. A clasp is attached to the first arm. The clasp allows the arms to be locked in one position relative to the other.
One function of the grabber is that of a walking cane. The arms are aligned in a first position, such that the cane has a handle, a shaft, and a foot. The shaft is formed from the two arms aligned in the longitudinal direction. The foot is formed from the aligned second ends. The gripping piece and first end of the first arm interfit and cooperate with the gripping piece and first end of the second arm to create a smooth and continuous handle. The gripping piece of each arm protrudes equidistantly in opposite directions from the shaft, such that the walking cane handle is centered upon the shaft. The abutting end of the lug of the second arm abuts the first side surface of the first arm. The abutting end of lug of the first arm abuts the first side surface of the second arm. The abutting surface of the lugs prevents bi-directional pivoting of the arms when the grabber functions as a cane. The clasp is used to keep the invention functioning as a cane by preventing the arms from pivoting relative to each other. The centering pin extending from the lug of the second arm is received within the centering hole of the first arm. This prevents the arms from spreading apart.
A second function of the grabber is to grab and pick up an object off the ground while the user remains standing. To enable the grabber to perform this function, the clasp is unlocked and the arms are pivoted nearly 360 degrees relative to each other to a second alignment position, In the second alignment position, the gripping pieces of the two arms face each other. A person inserts one or more fingers through the slots in the first and second arms in order to pivot and manipulate the arms. The gripping pieces of each arm cooperate in response to the pivoting and manipulation of the arms. The user directly controls the amount of force applied to the object by varying the amount of force applied to the slots. Further, a person can remain standing in an upright position while grabbing an object off the ground between the gripping pieces.
It is apparent to those skilled in the art that the user can easily switch the apparatus from a walking cane to a grabber, and vice versa. The user simply pivots the arms nearly 360 degrees relative to each other.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it is durable. The present invention is free from parts that can be easily knocked off or broken.
A second embodiment of the present invention functions to grab and pick up objects off the ground without requiring the user to bend over, but without also functioning as a walking cane. The second embodiment has two arms. Each arm has a first end and a second end, which together define the arm""s length in the longitudinal direction. The arms"" length may be the same as in the first embodiment. Each arm has an inner surface, an outer surface, and two side surfaces. A pivot hole is formed through each arm between the first end and the second end. The arms are pivotally attached to one another and can pivot relative to each other around their respective pivot holes. The inner surfaces of the arms are in facing contact with the other. A slot is formed through each arm from the inner surface to the outer surface proximal the second end, between the pivot hole and the second end.
A gripping piece is formed on the first ends of both arms. In one embodiment, the gripping piece comprises an ear, a lug, and a pad. An ear is on the first end of each arm. Each ear has a joint end and a free end. Each free end is laterally displaced from the joint end. There is a lug is on each ear. Each ear and respective lug are like-shaped. Each lug has a free end and an end proximal its respective arm. The free ends of each ear and respective lug are coplanar. A pad is connected to the free ends.
A user grips the slots in the first and second arms to pivot the arms and manipulate the grabber. The gripping pieces cooperate in response to pivoting the arms and manipulation of the slots. By urging the slots together, the user also urges the gripping pieces together. A person can remain standing and grab an object from the ground between the gripping pieces.
Other advantages, benefits, and features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the detailed description of the invention and studying the drawings.